Under Fire
by castlenova
Summary: The team's latest murder investigation puts Castle's mystery man contact in plain sight and the whole team must deal with the repercussions, including Beckett and Castle's lies to each other. Rated for safety, will increase.
1. Chapter 1

_So I know I started a similar story elsewhere but people can forget about that one – I've lost all interest in it. Hopefully my tiny attention span will work better on this one._

_Would love any feedback. _

_One_

She was drowsily watching the hourly news bulletin on one of the TV stations when the call came through. They'd had a tough day on a case and when Gates had told them to go home at around 4 o'clock no one had argued.

Castle had given Alexis a call to see where she was. Her hopes had dropped slightly when she heard him say he'd meet her in half an hour. She had hoped she might have been able to convince him to come for a drink with her so they could talk. Their relationship had been strained over the last few weeks and she knew she needed to fix that as soon as possible if she wanted him to remain in her life.

He'd bid them all goodnight quite amicably but the usual warmth that radiated from his eyes when he looked at her was missing. 'Goodnight Castle,' she'd said softly before stalling her exit in order to avoid an awkward elevator ride.

Now she was sat at home. Lanie had been suspiciously busy when she'd called soon after Castle had left and her detective side couldn't help but think that she and Espo were back on but not telling anybody. She smirked to herself. Maybe that was the way to have a relationship in this job.

She groaned loudly when she heard the phone but her interest was more than piqued when she saw Gates number show up on it rather than Ryan or Esposito's. She answered it in her usual professional tone.

"Detective Beckett, I know I gave you the evening off but you might want to get over here'" the Captain said in a brusque tone. In the background Beckett could hear sirens and shouting.

"Why? What's going on?"

"Arson case. But firemen found a body on the top floor and we're investigating." Beckett couldn't help noticing how jittery the captain sounded on the phone.

"Ok. What's the address?" she said, picking up a nearby pen and scrap of paper. She was ready to write when she realised Gates hadn't said anything.

"Sir? The address?" she asked, a cold feeling creeping through her stomach now. Iron Gates was calculating, she barked orders. What the hell had spooked her? If it was something to do with her mother's case she would have said it straight out. She was about to ask again for the address when Gates replied quickly.

"Broome Street. Get here quick." With that she hung up and Beckett felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. She swallowed hard. The address, and the fact that Gates had been so reluctant to talk on the phone was all the confirmation she needed.

The building on fire was Castle's.


	2. Chapter 2

_Big thanks to those reviewers and readers! Hopefully I can keep this coming fairly regularly for you and snare a few more readers…_

TWO

The usual fifteen minute drive from Beckett's apartment to SoHo was made about ten times longer by the fact that every time she tried Castle's number, it was going straight to his messaging service.

"Damn it, Castle!" she swore furiously, as she flicked the switch on her gumball at a bad traffic jam. She'd been told to get to the scene quick after all. As the traffic cleared a path, she typed in his number again but got the same answering service. She could feel her hands start to shake as she steered through to the other side of the traffic jam and veered left to avoid the next junction.

She tried to tell herself to calm down, that it couldn't be him. He'd been meeting Alexis somewhere. But that was hours ago. But one would never leave the loft without the other in the event of a fire, would they? No, not a chance.

Maybe he'd gotten hurt or inhaled too much smoke or went back to get something like the idiot she knew he could be. Every scenario she could think up was running through her head. She tried calling again even though she knew it was no use.

"God damn it Castle," she sighed softly.

CASTLE CASTLE CASTLE

By the time she pulled in at the scene, where a crowd of onlookers and media were gathered, she had worked herself up to such levels that she feared she might have a heart attack. She flashed her badge and crossed under the wire, heading for where she saw the firemen talking to some of the police, Gates among them.

The fire was under control and the firemen had been able to get inside for the last half hour or more. That was when the body had been discovered and when she'd received the call from Gates.

When the captain saw her, she peeled away from the group.

"Beckett, you got here fast."

Beckett felt like punching her. Of course she'd got here fast. It was her partner's building that was on fire, it was her partner's….no, it wasn't, she told herself. It wasn't his body.

"Sir. You said not to waste any time. So what's going on?" she asked as calmly as she could but it didn't fool Gates.

"Beckett, I know exactly what's going through your head," she said, but failed to elaborate until Beckett pushed her to do so. "Dr. Parish is up with the body now. It's on Castle's floor, his living room to be exact. Dr. Parish has been able to deduce that the body is male but after that, he's too badly burned to know any more until DNA tests are done." She spoke slowly, watching Beckett's every move and flinch.

"So where's Castle then?" Beckett asked, looking around at the groups of people who were standing, watching the devastation unfold over their homes. She knew how they felt.

"You haven't talked to him?" Gates sounded surprised at that, though why, Beckett couldn't tell. She'd seen how flighty she was when she arrived, she must have known how worried she was. She'd said as much when she greeted her for god's sake!

"No, his phone is going to his answering service. He's not here?" Beckett tried to stop the lump from sticking in her throat and choking her. She couldn't think, she could hardly breathe, she felt like she needed to get away but she couldn't move. Gates was speaking to her but she knew it wasn't anything important. She was trying to bring her back to the situation in hand. Beckett knew she had to come back to it too.

"I want to see the body," she said firmly and Gates nodded, walking with her as they both headed for the burnt out entrance to the building.

CASTLE CASTLE CASTLE

Beckett recognised the burnt out doorway they walked through into his apartment. Everything was singed, some crisped. There were a few features that had remained in decent condition but all around her the evidence of destruction, of death, was in the air and she was starting to wonder if this was a good idea.

She spotted Lanie just next to the pillar by the kitchen, leaning over the charred remains of someone who was not Castle. She was telling herself to believe it wasn't him. Esposito and Ryan were standing back from the scene watching their boss carefully as she moved to kneel next to Lanie.

"Lanie, please tell me what I need to hear here," she said, looking at the body. Gates was right. There was no way to tell. He looked about the same height and build as Castle but he was charred beyond any recognition so who was to know what he'd actually looked like. Her friend sighed next to her.

"Kate, we don't know anything yet. I _won't _know anything until I get him back to the lab. I thought you said he was going out to meet Alexis?" Lanie tried to change the subject, the first thing Beckett had done too. It couldn't be him. He went to meet Alexis.

"That was hours ago Lanie," she said softly, before standing up and looking around the room. She needed to find something, anything that she could question or wonder about but nothing clicked. She turned back to Gates.

"Do we know where the fire started?" she asked out of curiosity.

"Not yet. The Fire Chief will give me his report once he has it but at the moment they're assessing damages and determining whether they can let people in to gather belongings that weren't destroyed."

Beckett looked around Castle's apartment and couldn't imagine how anything anywhere could be intact. She glanced back at the body before shaking her head and bolting for the door, eyes threatening to fill with tears. She took the steps two at a time, flying past firemen and patrol cops as she did. She needed to get out. She couldn't be in his apartment if he wasn't in it. And she especially couldn't be in it if he _was_ in it now.

She had just taken the last of the steps to the Ground Floor when she collided with someone and fell back into a sitting position on the bottom step. The tears that had threatened spilled. It was as though all she had needed was for someone to tap the start button.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…Kate?"

She lifted her head, wiping her eyes quickly as the figure in front of her looked down at her. It caught her hands and pulled her to her feet where she finally allowed herself to look up.

"Castle…" she breathed and he was about to reply when she threw her arms around his neck and pulled him to her. It didn't take him long to take the hint and bring his arms around her skinny waist. He could hear her breathing shaking against his neck.

"Kate? It's ok, I'm right here," he said softly and that seemed to break her out of her spell. She stepped back and whacked him in the chest with the back of her hand.

"Ow, what was that for?" he whined, rubbing his chest with one hand.

"Why isn't your phone working?" she half bellowed at him, hands on her hips, meaning all business. He raised his eyebrows. She had gone from weeping worrier to psycho cop in the space of a minute.

"The battery died. Alexis' phone was working. Kate, what's going on? Are you ok?" he asked, his hands grabbing her arms at her elbows and hunching down in front of her. She sat back down on the step and he kneeled in front of her. She looked at him and he reached forward with his thumb to wipe a tear from under her eye.

"There's a body in your apartment. It was badly burnt, unrecognisable and I thought…I was afraid…."

"…that it was me," he finished for her and she nodded once. He smiled warmly and wiped another stray tear from under her other eye before standing and pulling her to her feet, "I'm right here Kate. Trust me, I'm going to keep annoying you for a little longer," he joked and she chuckled, slapping him again.

"Don't joke Castle, I really thought I'd lost you," she blurted it out and waited for him to latch onto it but he didn't. Instead, he steered her towards the exit, back out to where civilisation was watching the results of nature. They made their way down the steps and over to where Alexis was standing with their neighbours, the Morrisons. Beckett had met them only once but they seemed like nice people, loved Castle, as did everyone.

_Including you, _said a little voice in her head that she didn't even bother trying to quieten down. She took her phone and quickly called up to Espo to let him know that Castle had turned up so they could scratch him off the list of people the body could be. His mother was in the Hampton's and Alexis was safe and sound outside.

Castle was chatting to the neighbours when Beckett branched away from the group for a minute to collect herself. There were questions that needed answering, and information that needed gathering. Her evening off had turned into the evening from hell and the question that was weighing heaviest on her was the one that Castle was about to ask when he came stalking over towards her.

"So Beckett, we've figured out that I'm still here and alive…" he said quickly and she shook her head.

"For now," she replied curtly, teasing him.

"Nice. But seriously, if I'm here…who the hell is dead in my apartment? And how did he die?" he asked and Beckett turned to look at him. She was silent for a half minute as she took in his boyish features, the little hint of worry that was masked by his inherent excitement at being around such scenes.

"Looks like we've got a new case, Castle," she said grimly, turning back to look at the building which was nothing more than a shell, in front of her.

CASTLE CASTLE CASTLE

_Seems a good place to stop. Next chapter will have some more Gates and the gang before we organise where the Castles are going to sleep for the night._


	3. Chapter 3

_Short chapter again but there's a longer one coming down the line._

THREE

The Castles and Beckett were still speaking to the Morrisons when Gates strode up beside them. Beckett stepped back to create a triangle between she, Castle and the captain.

"Well I see you two sniffed each other out," she said curtly and Castle tilted his head at her choice of words. He raised his eyebrows.

"I'm glad to see you're relieved that I'm ok," he joked with a grin and watched as the captain rolled her eyes up to heaven before turning to Beckett.

"Dr. Parish is taking the body to the morgue, the fire inspector won't have the report until morning and the building super is going to send me a list of all the tenants and their contact numbers tomorrow. There's nothing more we can do tonight," she said, glancing back at the shell of the building.

"Ok sir, I'll call Lanie first thing in the morning," Beckett said, "Hopefully we can get an ID on this guy and start figuring out what happened.

"Mr Castle. Do you have any idea who this man might have been?" Gates barked suddenly, causing the writer to jump.

"Not a clue. Could be anyone, pizza boy, crazed fan, one of my mother's conquests, the list is endless," he smirked before quickly wiping it off his face off Beckett's look.

"Well that's a pity, because endless lists make it very difficult to catch murderers," said Gates before turning and walking away. Castle sighed before glancing back at Martha and Alexis where they stood talking. He looked at the ground.

"Ok, I guess I should go find a hotel that'll take a late," he looked at his watch, "a VERY late check-in." he said, moving to approach the others. Beckett's hand on his arm stopped him.

"Castle, you can stay at mine until you get a new place sorted," she said quickly and he raised an eyebrow at that.

"Oh Beckett, no, I couldn't. There's three of us and I don't want to impose on you," he said shaking his head though in reality he was only waiting for her to insist and ask again. Which she did.

"Seriously Castle, there's space, I managed to avoid dumping everything in that spare room so it's there for your mom and Alexis," she said, not noticing that Marth had stepped up beside her son. Castle was about to ask where she was planning on putting him when his mother butted in.

"Well Richard, I don't know about you but I'm going to the Hamptons, at least until you get something sorted out," she said with a smirk and a slap to his upper arm. She moved away before he could say anything and he shrugged.

"Nothing like your home burning down to get rid of your live-in mother," he quipped though Beckett could see the sadness as he looked up at the building he had inhabited for the last five years. She laid her hand on his elbow.

"Come on Castle, come stay with me, at least for tonight. You can make other arrangements tomorrow if you like." Her voice was soft, emitting all of the kindness that had first enchanted him about her. He nodded his head.

"Ok. Let me just grab Alexis."

He moved away and Beckett breathed a sigh of relief. It had been a hell of a night. She heard Lanie quietly jesting from a few yards away.

"I hope you know what you're doing girl." she said as she wheeled the stretcher past. Beckett smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, me too Lanie."

CASTLE. CASTLE. CASTLE.


	4. Chapter 4

_Four_

Before they managed to leave the scene, Beckett stopped to talk to Ryan and Espo, both of whom asked where the Castles were planning to stay. Espo had smirked when Beckett told him they were staying with her.

"Who the hell would be in Castle's house without their permission?" she said quietly to Espo who shook his head.

"I don't know Beckett, could be nothing. Could be a burglar, who knows?" he shrugged but Beckett shook her head.

"No, something doesn't feel right. Keep your eyes and ears open, ok?" she said quietly as Castle approached. Espo raised an eyebrow at her.

"You don't think...?"

"I don't know but let's be careful ok? And Espo? Get in contact with cops in the Hamptons, Martha's going out tomorrow, I want them to keep an eye on her in the event that someone is targeting them."

"Targeting who?" Castle said as he pushed Alexis ahead of him, toward Beckett's car. She took a deep breath and turned to face him.

"We're not ruling out the possibility that someone might have targeted you and might still be. I don't know why though." she said quickly. Castle frowned and shook his head.

"I don't think so. If they were targeting me, why didn't they leave when they saw there was no one home? And even if they were waiting for me, that fire alarm goes off pretty loud. Why would they stay in a building that was on fire? Call me crazy, but I'll bet money that this guy was dead before the fire started."

Beckett pursed her lips, thinking over what he'd said. She couldn't say that thought hadn't crossed her mind but she'd put it down to spending too much time around Castle and his over active imagination than actually seriously considering it.

"You could be right Castle. Come on, let's go. Espo, keep me posted." she said as they walked to her car.

"No problem boss." he called after her, smiling inwardly at the sight of her and Castle seemingly getting along again. He knew it would only take one instance of Castle getting himself hurt or into trouble to see her drop whatever quibble she had with him to help him. He sighed. The sooner they realised how perfect they were together, the better. Of course, he'd been saying that for four years.

CASTLE. CASTLE. CASTLE

Cattle insisted on stopping at a Chinese on the way to Beckett's to pick up food for them all. As a minuscule thank you for putting up with them, as he'd phrased it himself. He sent Alexis in with his credit card while he and Beckett waited in the car.

"So, level with me here Beckett. Do you think someone is targeting us? Because I can make some calls, and get extra security and..." He spoke calmly but Beckett could sense the worry in his voice. She shook her head.

"No Castle, I don't think you are. I think it's like you said earlier. But I still want to know who this guy was and why he was in your apartment. But honestly? I don't think you're in danger." she said softly, smiling reassuringly and he nodded.

"Ok then."

CASTLE. CASTLE. CASTLE.

They ate in companionable chit-chat back at Beckett's house after she had checked that her spare room was liveable. The subject of Alexis' future education made Castle visibly uncomfortable, she could tell by the way he looked down and concentrated on his Szechuan.

"So where are you thinking Alexis?" she asked. The girl risked a glance at her father before taking a bite of her food and saying, "It's between Stanford and Oxford at the moment." she said quickly. Beckett raised her eyebrows.

"Oxford? Wow, I didn't even know you'd applied for there." Beckett blurted out before realising how obvious that made it that she and Castle hadn't been talking lately.

If the younger girl noticed, she didn't say anything, instead shrugging and saying she thought it would be an amazing experience. Beckett simply nodded her head, not wanting to encourage the girl either way. She had a pretty good idea of how hard Castle was taking the idea of his daughter moving away from him.

CASTLE. CASTLE. CASTLE.

Alexis went to bed soon after they had eaten, saying she was tired and a little sad that every one of her possessions had been burnt to a crisp. Some of it was of sentimental value and she'd never get that back.

Beckett offered Castle some wine after Alexis had retired and he accepted wearily as he sat down on the couch.

"Even if someone did kill this guy, why burn down the building?" he pondered as she handed him a glass and sat down next to him.

"Try hide his tracks?" Beckett shrugged, sipping from her glass. Castle frowned.

"Maybe, but most people know how much forensics can pick up now. Short of him disintegrating, we were going to find something on him..." he said, his mind wracked to think of some story that fit what had happened that night.

"Castle," she said softly, "I never thought I'd see the day when I would be the one telling you to let something go but here I am, telling you to do just that, at least until tomorrow." she finished, punctuating it with a gulp of her wine. He nodded his head in submission.

"So, Oxford, huh?" she said, referring to Alexis and he groaned.

"And I want not to talk about that," he said grimly. Beckett nodded. They sat quietly for a moment in an awkward silence. Damn it, since when did they not have anything to talk about, she asked herself.

"So Beckett, this last month between us has been the worst of my life. I think we need to talk."

She froze as he said it, straight out, no hesitation, so much more confident to talk about things than her. She both admired and was thankful for him because she didn't think she could have said anything.

"Yeah Castle. I think we do."

CASTLE. CASTLE. CASTLE.


End file.
